A firearm is typically cleaned by use of a gun cleaning rod. A conventional gun cleaning rod is comprised of three basic parts: a handle; a cleaning rod; and a cleaning tip. The typical cleaning tip comprises an arrangement wherein a piece of material, known in the art as a "patch", is secured to the tip. To clean a firearm, the cleaning tip (including patch) is inserted into the muzzle or breech end of a gun barrel. The patch is then moved back and forth so as to clean the barrel.
A recurring problem with prior art devices is that as the cleaning tip is withdrawn from the chamber end of the gun barrel, the patch has a tendency to become removed therefrom. This requires not only that a new patch be attached to the cleaning tip, but also requires that the removed patch be retrieved from the gun barrel. Thus, excess time and effort is required to complete the task. Moreover, the conventional cleaning patch often is repeatedly drawn through the barrel, causing dirt and fouling substances to be scrubbed back and forth in the bore.